Wild Fiction

‘The author of course. Watch, he’s going to pick us off one by one until we’re all gone. I can’t take any more of this. I’m taking a Valium and going to bed.’ She held onto him, sobbing in fits and starts, before pushing herself away and disappearing inside.
Conrad sat down on the steps and gripped James by the shoulders. ‘That was a close one mate.’
James did not reply. He sat curled up in a ball, wet and shivering in the heat of the tropical night.
Conrad let himself into Rebecca’s cabin. Once his eyes had adjusted to the darkness he moved over to her bunk. She was lying on her back with her mouth open and lightly snoring. The silk sheet was only covering the lower half of her body and he could make out her naked breast in the dim light. He pulled off his shorts and slipped under the sheet with her. He kissed and caressed her but could not wake her from her diazepam-induced sleep. Exhausted, he wrapped his arms around her and fell asleep.

Chapter 24

Conrad woke to the sound of a splash in the water. He stretched out his arms and feeling nothing opened his eyes and saw that Rebecca was gone. He emerged on deck rubbing his eyes and yawning. Rebecca was swimming off the stern of the boat. ‘You’re very brave for someone who saw a shark in there last night,’ he said to her.
‘I put the goggles on and looked around first and there’s nothing here except coral fish. I’ve already told you, sharks feed mostly at night, come on in, it’s lovely.’
James appeared on deck. ‘No sharks then?’ he asked her.
‘You two are pathetic. No, there aren’t any sharks. Come and swim with me.’
James cocked his head to one side and then looked at Conrad. ‘Do you hear anything?’
‘Like what? You mean, like something unusual?’ Conrad was halfway down the steps to join Rebecca in the water.
‘An engine, I’m sure I can hear an engine over there,’ James was pointing to the mouth of the lagoon.
Conrad turned his ear towards the entrance they had come in yesterday and listened. Then he looked up at the sky.
‘Nope, I can’t hear anything, except that waterfall and those birds. Perhaps it’s a plane.’